Hippopotamus 



roar of the rapids was in my ears, and the shadowy, 

 purple, impressive Congo mountains towering on 

 the far side of the river were visible from within 

 my tent, the flaps being raised to encourage the 

 slightest breath of air in this curious crack in 

 the earth's floor. Hereabouts the Uganda side 

 of the river is for the most part a series of rolling 

 plains, small rivers, and watercourses, down to 

 the Nile bed ; whilst on the opposite bank the 

 land rises to, say, one hundred feet, and then 

 presumably drops into a narrow valley that ought 

 to be stiff with game of all sorts. A little further 

 on — a short mile from the western bank of the 

 Nile — rises a grand range of mountains, which 

 appears to be quite 2000 feet high from our 

 standpoint of river-bed and grass. Beyond, the 

 natives tell me, is plain again, but all on a higher 

 level than ours. 



A sudden shout and rush of the meat-loving 

 porters roused me — from only a doze be it 

 assured — and the " gup " was all about the 

 hippo that had risen and was floating down 

 stream, becoming now and again hidden in the 

 rush of water. I got on some clothes and 

 wandered down to the river bank, to find the 

 body washed high and dry on some rocks in 

 mid-stream. 



Having sent for rope from camp to use in- 

 stead of the native-made twisted creeper things 

 to pull the monster in by, I began to explain the 



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